James Stafford

Latest articles from James

• Don’t Be Fooled by Libya—This is a Failed State

  Published 10 October 2013 | viewed 24,839 times

  Gunmen today seized Libyan Prime Minister Ali Zeidan from a hotel in central Tripoli, releasing him shortly afterwards, but making it clear that post-Gaddafi Libya…

• Solving the Oil Industry Generation Gap

  Published 07 October 2013 | viewed 7,656 times

  Today’s oil and gas workforce is full of Baby Boomers and the ranks of Generation Y, leaving Generation X sidelined in the industry and languishing…

• This Week in Energy: Welcome to the US Shale Reshuffle

  Published 04 October 2013 | viewed 11,479 times

  This week we are watching with great interest what will be a reshuffling of US shale assets that paints an interesting picture of the emerging…

• Balancing Geological Potential and Political Risk: Interview with Tony Hayward

  Published 03 October 2013 | viewed 30,907 times

  From Kurdistan to Somaliland, for independent oil companies, getting your hands on new exploration acreage where both technical risk and political risk are low is…

• This Week in Energy: Driving Oil’s Ups and Downs

  Published 27 September 2013 | viewed 5,452 times

  When the Fed decided last week to maintain its Quantitative Easing, oil prices responded with a $2/barrel rise. But this has been balanced by the…

• The Shale Boom, Just Getting Started: Interview with Tyler Cowen

  Published 24 September 2013 | viewed 77,346 times

  Thanks to the shale boom, markets already perceive the trade balance optimizing, energy prices are cheaper than they would otherwise be and we’ve even cut…

• US Natural Gas Exports Picking Up Momentum

  Published 13 September 2013 | viewed 8,572 times

  Nerves less rattled over Syria, reflected in falling oil prices; the swelling LNG export momentum in the US—but is a pause in the works?; and…

• 5 Giant Game-Changing Energy Trends

  Published 06 September 2013 | viewed 5,846 times

  The most important aspect of predictive energy investing is keeping up with technological advancements BEFORE they go viral. These are the hints; the bread crumbs…

• This Week in Energy: Oil Price Predictions and a Potential U.S. Strike on Syria

  Published 06 September 2013 | viewed 14,987 times

  Our take on oil price predictions and the anxiety over a potential US strike on Syria …The specter of a US strike on Syria continues…

• Kerogen Oil Shale: The Next Rock of Ages?

  Published 30 August 2013 | viewed 7,062 times

  As with everything else, it’s all about economic feasibility. This is the story of kerogen (oil shale), and could be a huge one, or it…

• This Week in Energy: Syria and Oil Prices – What is Obama’s next Move?

  Published 30 August 2013 | viewed 7,404 times

  This week, it’s all about Syria because what happens next here will determine the course of geopolitical dynamics across the Middle East—and of course will…

• How to Trade the Ongoing Events in Syria

  Published 29 August 2013 | viewed 7,510 times

  We have a great report lined up for you tomorrow, but before then I wanted to let you know that tomorrow’s premium letter is a…

• Algae Creeps Slowly Towards Viability

  Published 23 August 2013 | viewed 7,497 times

  Right now algae is simply too expensive to produce—and the process uses more energy than we get back. But by around 2017, with more money…

• This Week in Energy: Mexico’s Desperate Leap Forward to Jumpstart Oil Production

  Published 23 August 2013 | viewed 11,181 times

  Mexico’s desperate leap forward to jumpstart oil production; offshore trouble brewing between Nicaragua and Colombia; Syria as a proxy for a looming war over Mediterranean…

• Recycling: The Future of Fracking

  Published 16 August 2013 | viewed 5,793 times

  The “hydraulic” part of the fracking equation means buying a lot of water and then paying to get rid of it once it’s been tainted.…

• This Week in Energy: A Summer of Chaos in the Middle East

  Published 16 August 2013 | viewed 5,748 times

  It’s a summer of chaos in the Middle East and North Africa, which translates into great news for oil prices; Egypt chaos will continue and…

• Bigger Profits from Smaller Players

  Published 09 August 2013 | viewed 3,195 times

  Forget about Big Oil this year and focus your attention on those smaller US-shale-focused players because they have begun to outperform the big boys and…

• This Week in Energy: Another move forward on US LNG exports

  Published 09 August 2013 | viewed 8,878 times

  Another move forward on US LNG exports; what’s really behind global terror travel warnings; and the latest teasers from this week’s premium offerings. This week…

• Hooking up the Grid: Power Ships and Floating Nuclear Plants

  Published 02 August 2013 | viewed 5,048 times

  How do you overcome chronic power shortages in developing countries or in remote areas? “Power ships” and floating nuclear platforms.First, we’ve got a massive new…

• This Week in Energy: Saudi Prince’s Panicked Tweet Over U.S. Shale Boom

  Published 02 August 2013 | viewed 11,808 times

  The death of America’s shale revolutionary; a Saudi Prince’s panicked twittering over oil; a long-awaited victory for the EPA; the latest prognosis from the Energy…